Traders in Woodley are hoping a new supermarket will provide a welcome boost to business after more than 150 shoppers turned out for the grand opening.

Yellow balloons fluttered in the wind as a crowd of shoppers lined up in Woodley last Thursday to mark the opening of the new Lidl store in Headley Road. It is hoped the development will encourage more out-of-town shoppers to the area.

Town centre manager Jacques Lherbier said: “I was there at the opening with the mayor who cut the ribbon and the store was busy throughout the day. It was not only the store that was busy but the whole town was thriving.

“My feeling about the arrival of Lidl is that it’s going to increase footfall of people coming into Woodley by bringing people that would not normally come here and it will then benefit the other traders in the town centre.

“Certainly the interest on the day was incredible. Even the chaps from Lidl were taken by surprise.”

Woodley mayor Councillor Coling Lawley joined staff from Lidl to cut the red tape and declare the store officially open last Thursday. Between 150 and 200 people turned out to watch the opening of the new supermarket in Headley Road and many were delighted to receive a free bunch of flowers to celebrate the occasion.

High street traders in Crockhamwell Road saw a knock-on effect from the opening on the day and are hoping the trend will continue.

Lesley Westwood, manager at Chapter One bookshop, said: “We certainly had more customers coming in. There were more people around and we had a few more wandering in although a lot of ours are regular customers.

“The ones that came in who had been to Lidl gave very positive feedback about it and we had a German lady who felt quite at home because Lidl had opened in Woodley.

“I think it fits in nicely between Iceland and Waitrose and I think it could well bring in the people that would have gone to Asda to save them the drive.”

Linda Warren, from Warren’s Pet Supplies, said: “I would say there were a few more people in the shop on the opening day and more people came into our shop. The town centre did seem a bit busier.

“I would hope it brings more people to Woodley. People that don’t normally come here might come to go to Lidl which would be a good thing. Hopefully it will bring more people in because it’s different to what we have had here before.

“We’ve only had a quick chance to get in there at the moment but it looks pretty good.”

Other traders remain positive about the development but said a lack of free parking facilities could discourage some shoppers from coming into the town centre.

Mike Harbour, manager of Brighton’s newsagents in Crockhamwell Road, said: “There was more activity there’s no doubt about that. I would not say it was significantly noticeable but you could see a lot more movement. A good indicator is the number of newspapers we sold and we did seem to sell a few more. It was a busy day.

“I think it’s going to draw people in but parking may be a problem. The car park allocation for Lidl is very small so people have to pay. People coming in from outside Woodley are going to be reluctant to use these car parks but generally I think it’s probably going to be good.”